Breathing apparatus



Dec. 16, 1969 Filed March 22, 1966 E. WARNCKE ET AL 3,483,887

BREATHING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR6 Ernst Warnck Hans Haas ATTO EYJ Filed March 22, 1966 'Dec. 16, 1969 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 J i {a w {G Ili V E 5 r" J WWI kg I 42 u s r I .9, n

INVENTORS Q Ernst Warncke Hans Haas BY 'z nonw s United States Patent 3,483,887 EREATHTNG APPARATUS Ernst Warneke and Hans Haas, Lubeclr, Germany, assignors to Otto H. Drager, Lubeck, Germany Filed Mar. 22, 1966, Ser. No. 536,467 Claims priority, application Germany, Mar. 24, 1965,

Int. C. A62h 7/04, 9/02; A61m 16/00 U.S. Cl. 137494 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a breathing apparatus.

A breathing apparatus is known which has a gas tank, a breathing bag, and a valve for the gas tank which is controllable by the air pressure from the lungs. A carbon dioxide danger exists during the use of the apparatus inasmuch as the gas in the lungs is exceedingly enriched with the carbon dioxide during certain periods of time. To avoid this danger, a so-called cleaning apparatus is used which permits a certain amount of oxygen to fiow from the gas tank into the breathing system when the apparatus is being used. This flow of oxygen cleans the air in the apparatus from its high carbon dioxide content. The special valve controls needed for the cleaning apparatus are expensive.

Rocker arm valves can be used for such breathing apparatus. This valve has a valve plate to close off the oxygen supply by means of a lever which extends through the valve seat, the valve plate being actuated by a control means such as a breathing bag, membrane, accordion bag or the like included in the breathing system. When a less than atmospheric pressure exists in the breathing system, the control members engage a rocker arm lever attached to the valve plate so as to open the valve. Rocker arm valves are also used on which an external pressure exerts a side pressure and which are provided with a pressure reducing means. The latter is used to compensate for the force exerted on the rocker arm valve and which forces changes with the reduction in external pressure.

The objection of this invention is to avoid the disadvantages of the heretofore used breathing apparatus. In this invention, a lung-controlled valve is actuated by a movable control member of the breathing system. When the users lungs inhale air from the breathing bag, the bag collapses and moves a control member to open an oxygen valve, and vice versa. The valve is thus lungcontrolled. In this invention, the movable control member, such as a breathing bag, is arranged to hold the lung-controlled valve in open position when the apparatus is ready for use. This has the advantage that, when the apparatus is unpacked, the compressed oxygen in the tank immediately flows through the lung-controlled valve into the breathing system of the apparatus and cleans the air therein. This eliminates the need for a special cleaning apparatus.

According to this invention, the rocker arm engages a valve head which has a pin for closing the valve opening and may be connected to the valve head by tension means. This avoids a constant one-way stress of the rocker arm valve surface when the valve is held constantly open for immediate operation when the breathing apparatus ice is ready for use. Such is desirable for an emergency breathing apparatus using a rocker arm valve which is lungcontrolled and which apparatus is to be kept ready for instant operation. In the heretofore used construc- .ions, the elastic material of the valve seat which forms the seal would become deformed when the valve is held in an open position for a long period of time. Consequently, when the apparatus is actually used, the valve would be in the so-called closed position of the valve seat and would not close satisfactorily because the seat would be deformed. In this invention, the axial component of the rocking movement is transmitted to the valve plate and/ or the closing pin of the valve. When the rocker arm is tilted from its axial position, the valve is opened and the entire valve plate is lifted from the valve seat so that a one-sided pressure is not produced.

The means by which the objects of the invention are obtained are described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a cross-sectional view through the breathing apparatus of this invention;

IGURE 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view through the lungcontrolled rocker arm oxygen tank valve.

As shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, housing 1 contains oxygen tank 2 and breathing bag 3. The housing is closed by a removable cover 1a. Breathing bag 3 is joined to the sleeve 4 of the oxygen tank valve 5. Valve 5 is a rocker arm valve which has its rocker arm K positioned within breathing bag 3.

Valve 5 is mounted on the cap 7 for the tank 2. This cap carries a pin 8 which is seated in a slotted bracket 9 fastened to the housing so that the tank 2 and valve 5 can be accurately positioned in the housing.

This apparatus is so constructed that when packed and ready for use the breathing bag 3 is folded as shown in FIGURE 2. The folds engage rocker arm K so that the arm is tilted from its axial position relative to the valve and holds the valve open. This position of the arm is ensured as the pin 8 and bracket 9 keeps the valve 5 from turning to follow the pressure movement of the rocker arm. Breathing bag 3 is preferably reinforced in the area where it is engaged by arm K. It is therefore ensured that when the apparatus is packed with cover In closed it is ready for use. When the cover is removed and cap 7 opened, oxygen at once flows through valve 5 of the bag 3 and extends the bag out of housing 1 so that it no longer engages arm K so that the arm returns from its tilted position. This produces an oxygen precleaning of the breathing system.

As shown in FIGURE 3, nut 10 is used to secure the casing for valve 5 to tank 2. Oxygen passes through bore 11 into a high oxygen gas pressure chamber 12. A poly onal shaped valve head 13 is engageable with the valve seat 14. The engaging surface of the head 13 can be composed of elastic synthetic sealing material.

On the opposite side of head 13 is a movable pressure stabilizing rod 15 which extends through a seal 16 and into a second chamber 17. Passageway 18 places this second chamber 17 in communication with the outside atmosphere or with the interior of the breathing bag or the like. This rod has substantially the same cross-sectional area as the valve seat 14. Spring 19 urges the valve head 13 toward closing position. This construction results in that the closing pressure of the valve head 13 against the seat 14 is independent of the prior valve pressures and/ or the gas pressure in tank 2.

Rocker arm K is joined to a rocker plate 20 which engages with the end 21 of a hollow socket 22 threaded into the end of the valve. The socket has an interior outwardly diverging side wall. A piston 23 of polygonal cross-section bears against a boss on plate 20 and has a pin 24 extending through valve seat 14 and into contact with valve head 13. Pin 24 is of less cross-sectional area than the valve seat. As soon as rocker arm K is titled from axial alignment with the valve, piston 23 is moved by rocker plate 20 toward valve head 13 and the valve is opened. The compressed oxygen then flows through valve seat 14 past piston 23 and through bores 2.0a and plate 20 into the breathing bag.

The outlet 25 of socket 22 is enclosed by an elastic rubber collar 26 which surrounds arm K and has lips 27 which engage the arm. When the compressed gas flows out of opening 25, the lips are lifted in the manner of a check valve. Collar 26 prevents dust or any other foreign substance in the breathing system from entering into the valve mechanism.

An annular fitting 30 is used for the gas-tight sealing of the rod 15 and this fitting includes annular sealing rings 31. Because socket 22 can be threaded into place, it is ensured that the opening path and opening time for the valve head 13 can be simply adjusted.

Having now described the means by which the objects of the invention are obtained,

We claim:

1. A breathing apparatus comprising a housing enclosing an oxygen tank valve having a casing and a breathing bag, a valve control rocker arm actuated by a wall of said bag, piston means in said casing engageable by one end of said arm, valve head means having means for urging said piston means toward said arm, a valve seat engageable by a portion of said valve head means to arrest flow through said apparatus, said piston urging means biasing said valve head portion toward said valve seat, said casing having a high pressure oxygen gas chamber which receives said valve head portion for valving movement therein, a pressure stabilizing rod fixed to said valve head portion for movement therewith and having approximately the same cross-sectional area as said valve seat and extending through said gas pressure chamber, a second chamber in said easing into which the free end of said rod extends. and passageway means for providing communication between said second chamber and said breathing bag, said gas chamber communicating with said bag through said valve seat in the open position of the valve, opening movement of said arm actuating said piston means to move said valve head means against the closing bias to an open position.

2. An apparatus as in claim 1, further comprising sealing ring means surrounding said rod between said gas pressure chamber andsaid second chamber, and said piston urging means including spring means for urging said valve head means toward said valve seat.

3. An apparatus as in claim 2, further comprising a hollow socket threaded to said calve casing, and said rocker arm extending through said socket into engagement with said piston means.

4. An apparatus as in'claim 3, further comprising elastic collar means surrounding said rocker arm and attached to said casing for forming a portion of an outlet passage communicating with said valve seat and a check valve for the oxygen emitted from said valve.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 112,035 2/1871 Hedges 251240 XR 2,656,145 10/1953 Lawson 251--241 XR FOREIGN PATENTS 1,351,239 12/1963 France.

494,926 11/ 1938 Great Britain.

WILLIAM F. ODEA, Primary Examiner RICHARD GERARD, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

